Power worker severely burned in Va.

A man working on an electrical transformer in Alexandria City late Monday night was severely burned when the transformer exploded and shot hot oil on to the man's face and upper body, Alexandria fire officials said Tuesday.

The man's injuries were not life-threatening, Battalion Chief John North said. His name was not released.

Dominion Power officials said he was a 46-year-old employee, suffered second-degree burns and was in stable condition Tuesday.

The incident happened about 11:50 p.m., on a pole behind a house in the unit block of Del Ray Avenue in the Del Ray section of the city, North said. The city had been suffering through power outages throughout the hot holiday Monday, and the worker was responding to one reported outage when a seal on the transformer ruptured, Dominion spokesman Jim Norvelle said. Transformers contain oil to keep them cool, Norvelle said.

The man was taken by ambulance to the parking lot of the Potomac Yards shopping center, where a helicopter then flew him to the Burn Center at Washington Hospital.

Firefighters were then needed to extinguish the burning transformer and pole, but North said there was no serious damage to any other property. Norvelle said Dominion was continuing to investigate the cause of the explosion.

My thoughts and prayers go out to this man and his loved ones. And my appreciation to all those who put their bodies and lives at risk to serve the public in our utility industries. They deserve our thanks just as do our police, fire, and military personnel.